Letters to the Editor

Help-less

February 10, 2013

With America being one of the richest countries on earth (if that still stands with being nearly $17 trillion in debt) people should have no trouble buying groceries and paying for their medicine. However, many people have to still make a hard decision between them. There have been programs set up to help these people but these are slowly disappearing.

Certain medicine programs have been done away with and the amount of food stamps has been decreased even though the number of people who depend on them has increased. As the costs of both go up this help is even more drastically needed. I know many say that if you don't work you don't eat, but just how Christian is that?

There are many who simply cannot hold a job because of disability or have a hard time finding a job in today's economy. This isn't any more so than for our older citizens. Like food, medicine is a necessity to life and not a luxury. Affording your medication in many cases is a life or death matter. I myself have six different pills I have to take with the most critical also being the most expensive.

To make enough to barely afford the medication is most often the cutoff point of receiving any help. Of course, it should go without question that it takes a lot of money to develop, process and package medication but what most people do not realize is that most of the drugs also bring in 50 percent to 75 percent profit margins.

If the government truly cares about the welfare of its citizens, they need to put a roof limit on this to no more than 30 percent profit. It sure makes a lot more sense than the government's wasteful spending.